Dan Cattermole
Dan Down - The Steampunk Womble
Hi folks,
Haven't been around for a while. Live is full of drama currently which consumes a lot of my time. Photography is not top of the agenda for those reasons, but I do try where I can.
I completed the 31mile STW Water Aid mountain challenge on Saturday. For those who know me well, or enough, I can only apologise, but will also know I'm not shy of a few extreme events or two. Last year I did Tough Guy, which was completely and utterly ruthlessness and carnage to ones body, and mind.
This year, Saturday just gone to be more precise, I had done 31 mile course over the Peak District. Part jog part walk.
The scenery was to die for, but so were a new pair of feet. I had done next to no training for this as I know my physical energy does not have no issues in a challenge like this... I could do 50 miles, it's just allowing other body parts to comply and sing from the same sheet.
5 mile in I twisted my ankle pretty bad as the terrain is stupendously rough at stages. This resulted me limping for the next 26 miles.... Great start.... Cocodamol and codeine worked wonders as a masking agent to some extent.
To top matters of on the scale of insanity, I had no hiking boots. So I decided to purchase some.... Great!! But realising that purchasing a new pair 24 hours before the event, and using the 31 miles of the event to wear them in, was not one of my finest moments of achievements and will certainly go down on record for all the wrong reasons.
To say I have 'blisters' doesn't do my circumstance any justice. All tricks of the trade weren't any good for prevention either. Talc, blister resistant mountaineering socks, blister pads... You name it.... It failed, very very miserably. The pictures I have to show are very gruesome and cringeworthy. But, I'd have no issues in showing if all would like to see....
24 miles on to the course my forever energetic body and mind was having a conflab with my feet, and at one stage I briefly halted to consider what I was doing to myself.... All for about 5 seconds and continued. The pain, especially coming down hill was what I can only describe as having your big toes cut off very slowly with a butter knife whilst washing to blood away with vinegar.
It was then that I'd certain l passed the point of no return....to be fair, this was only pain now... And pain I can dismiss.
The scenery was beautiful, the weather on Saturday was simply too hot and not ideal for that type of event. Prior to participating, you have a kit bag check before you start. This includes, waterproofs, too and bottoms, warm clothing? (Pffff, as if) rations, food, water... Lots of it. First aid kit. Etc... So you can imagine that it'd weigh you down slightly, therefore, 26 degrees celsius did not sooth much.
I took my Fuji with me... Didn't get to take a great deal of piccies as that was the last thing of my mind.
But for everything I'd been through I took one shot with my iPhone to represent the recovery from this achievement. Feet all wrapped up in bandage.
image by DanCatt, on Flickr
Other pictures can be posted on request.....
Thanks for reading.
Haven't been around for a while. Live is full of drama currently which consumes a lot of my time. Photography is not top of the agenda for those reasons, but I do try where I can.
I completed the 31mile STW Water Aid mountain challenge on Saturday. For those who know me well, or enough, I can only apologise, but will also know I'm not shy of a few extreme events or two. Last year I did Tough Guy, which was completely and utterly ruthlessness and carnage to ones body, and mind.
This year, Saturday just gone to be more precise, I had done 31 mile course over the Peak District. Part jog part walk.
The scenery was to die for, but so were a new pair of feet. I had done next to no training for this as I know my physical energy does not have no issues in a challenge like this... I could do 50 miles, it's just allowing other body parts to comply and sing from the same sheet.
5 mile in I twisted my ankle pretty bad as the terrain is stupendously rough at stages. This resulted me limping for the next 26 miles.... Great start.... Cocodamol and codeine worked wonders as a masking agent to some extent.
To top matters of on the scale of insanity, I had no hiking boots. So I decided to purchase some.... Great!! But realising that purchasing a new pair 24 hours before the event, and using the 31 miles of the event to wear them in, was not one of my finest moments of achievements and will certainly go down on record for all the wrong reasons.
To say I have 'blisters' doesn't do my circumstance any justice. All tricks of the trade weren't any good for prevention either. Talc, blister resistant mountaineering socks, blister pads... You name it.... It failed, very very miserably. The pictures I have to show are very gruesome and cringeworthy. But, I'd have no issues in showing if all would like to see....
24 miles on to the course my forever energetic body and mind was having a conflab with my feet, and at one stage I briefly halted to consider what I was doing to myself.... All for about 5 seconds and continued. The pain, especially coming down hill was what I can only describe as having your big toes cut off very slowly with a butter knife whilst washing to blood away with vinegar.
It was then that I'd certain l passed the point of no return....to be fair, this was only pain now... And pain I can dismiss.
The scenery was beautiful, the weather on Saturday was simply too hot and not ideal for that type of event. Prior to participating, you have a kit bag check before you start. This includes, waterproofs, too and bottoms, warm clothing? (Pffff, as if) rations, food, water... Lots of it. First aid kit. Etc... So you can imagine that it'd weigh you down slightly, therefore, 26 degrees celsius did not sooth much.
I took my Fuji with me... Didn't get to take a great deal of piccies as that was the last thing of my mind.
But for everything I'd been through I took one shot with my iPhone to represent the recovery from this achievement. Feet all wrapped up in bandage.
image by DanCatt, on Flickr
Other pictures can be posted on request.....
Thanks for reading.
